Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Authors Note: So this is a little idea my friend Lizz and I came up with a few years ago. We created the idea together so I must give her credit for her input and ideas.
I hope you like it! I'll try to update once a week maybe once a fortnight depending on my school commitments.
Kathryn sighed as the door chime rang, disturbing her train of thought.
'Come in!' she said and the doors slid open in response to her command. A young girl, half human, half Ktarian walked in and stood in front of her desk.
'Captain's assistant Naomi Wildman, reporting for duty!' Naomi said formally.
Naomi was the only child onboard Voyager but despite this Naomi was never bored or unhappy, she was just like any other member of the crew, only younger and a lot smaller.
'Naomi,' Kathryn said. ' I have a very important task for you. It's a lot of responsibility. Are you sure you're up to the challenge?'
'Yes captain!' Naomi replied smiling.
'I need you to assist Tom at the conn.' Kathryn knew how much Naomi wanted to learn about the ships functions, especially how to fly the ship.
Naomi beamed with excitement. 'Thank you Captain!' Naomi practically squealed as she ran towards the door. Naomi was so excited that she didn't see the person standing at the door and crashed into Commander Chakotay as they opened.
'I'm sorry Commander.' Naomi stated formally with a hint of embarrassment. Chakotay just smiled trying to muffle a laugh. He knew Kathryn had just told her she could assist Tom at the conn and Naomi's excitement was very apparent by the massive smile she had plastered on her face.
'It's alright Naomi, Tom's waiting for you at the conn,' Chakotay walked in and the doors closed behind him as Naomi ran out onto the bridge.
'I have that ships systems report you wanted captain.' Chakotay stated formally.
'Thank you.' Kathryn took the report and walked over to the replicator. 'Coffee?'
'Ah, tea would be nice.' Chakotay responded as he sat down on the couch.
Kathryn smiled and turned towards the replicator. 'Tea and coffee, black.' Kathryn commanded.
Within seconds the hot beverages appeared. She picked up the cups and placed the tea on the table in front of Chakotay before sitting down and taking a long sip of her coffee. Their close proximity made Kathryn's heart begin to race the awkward silence that had fallen between them made Kathryn feel tense. Finally Chakotay spoke.
'So what did you think of the systems report? Everything in order?'
'Yes, everything is fine.' Kathryn knew her reply sounded uneasy. She didn't know why. Being around Chakotay had never made her feel uneasy before. Or had it?
'Is something wrong Kathryn?' His concern was evident in his tone of voice. Chakotay could sense how tense she was and he knew it would most likely have nothing to do with the ship.
'No I'm fine.' A lie. She wasn't fine. But she couldn't tell Chakotay. She had no idea what was causing these unsettling feelings. It was highly frustrating but she tried not to let her frustration get the better of her.
Chakotay just smiled and stood up. He didn't want to pry. He knew she would talk to him about whatever was bothering her in her own time. 'Thanks for the tea.' He simply said as me made his way towards the door.
'You're welcome.' her response was barely audible. She had already re-entered her thoughts. As unprofessional as it was, she couldn't help herself.
Chakotay left the ready room, leaving her alone with her thoughts. . All her worries we going to her head, the ship, her crew, Chakotay! Why did Chakotay all of a sudden make her feel so tense? Why did her heart race when she saw him? Kathryn couldn't think rationally about anything any longer. Looking over at the clock she realized how late it was. She decided to retire to her quarters.
As Kathryn slept, a little red note materialized on her bedside table. When she woke she didn't even notice it until she picked up her comm badge. She froze. How the hell did that get there? She thought. Picking it up, her instincts told her to call security because no one should have been able to get anything into her quarters. But in this case, she knew her instincts were wrong. Looking at it she noticed her name delicately hand written on the front of it. She opened the note and read:
"Here's a special birthday hunt made especially for you. Now follow all the clues around to find out who loves you."
Kathryn just laughed. Her senior officers had obviously prepared a special little joke for her birthday. She decided the bridge was the most logical place she should look for her next clue so she left her quarters for the turbo lift.
Exiting the turbo lift, she noticed how quiet the bridge was. The night shift wasn't quite over but she thought there would have been more chatter amongst her crew. Ensign Harry Kim sat in the captains' chair. He looked relaxed but as soon as he noticed her and sprang to his feet.
'Captain on the bridge!' He alerted the crew. Everyone sprang to attention.
'Carry on Ensign, your shift isn't over yet'.
'Yes captain.' Harry relaxed and settled back into his roll as acting captain.
Kathryn entered her ready room. For once she didn't have any work to do and this bothered her. All she could think about was that note that had appeared on her bedside table that morning. What if someone really did love her? It would have to be one of her senior officers. Who else could know her well enough to love her? No, it had to be a joke. Either way she intended to find out. Not knowing was frustrating enough!
